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Woman sentenced to 19 years for multi-state crime spree

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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — A federal judge has sentenced a Missouri woman to 19 years in prison after what prosecutors called a four-state state crime spree that ended when her boyfriend was killed in a shoot-out with police.

U.S. District Judge Madeline Hughes Haikala sentenced 32-year-old Brittany Nicole Harper of Joplin, Missouri, on Tuesday. Harper pleaded guilty to carjacking, transporting a stolen vehicle across state lines, conspiracy and brandishing a gun.

Authorities say Harper was involved in a 10-day crime spree that began in Missouri and went through Alabama and Georgia before ending in Florida. Prosecutors said she and her partner stole cars, burglarized a home and kidnapped two people during carjackings.

The crimes ended Feb. 5, 2016, when Harper’s boyfriend, Blake Fitzgerald, was killed during a shootout with police in Milton, Florida.